Oil Prices Down As API Reports Yet Another Crude Build

The latest American Petroleum Institute (API) report shows a crude oil build more than two times larger than experts expected, after last week’s government report revealed a record 14.4 million barrel increase in domestic inventories.

The API reported a 4.4-million-barrel build in oil supplies in lieu of the two-million-barrel spike that Zerohedge’s industry insiders had anticipated.

Oil prices were down slightly after the API numbers were released. As of this article’s writing, West Texas Intermediate is down 0.13 percent at $44.83, while Brent is down 0.54 percent at $45.90.

Gasoline supplies saw a 3.6-million-barrel draw – more than two times bigger than the 1.5-million-barrel decrease forecasted. This is the third straight week of U.S. gas supply declines.

Taking on a 4.3-million-barrel draw, distillates saw the seventh week in a row of inventory drops.

The API’s results will either be confirmed or denied by the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA) report, which will be released tomorrow.

The EIA’s report has been watched even more closely than normal due to growing doubts that OPEC will manage to hammer out an output freeze deal. In addition to Iraq’s insistence to be exempted from any such deal because of its urgent need for oil revenues to continue fighting IS, news came that Libya and Nigeria are quickly increasing their output, seeking to make up for lost revenues.

Hopes are dwindling that, even if an agreement is reached and even if Russia joins it, market balanced would be restored, as Libya and Nigeria – both already exempt from the freeze talks – added a combined 800,000 barrels to global oil supply last month.